I'm a demon in Tokyo!

Chapter 238 The Duel Begins! The First Battle: A Projection That Has Dominated for a Thousand Years, the Hojo Clan's [Five-Colored Armor]

Above the sky, figures radiating powerful spiritual energy moved rapidly through the sonic booms, leaving behind long, narrow, pale white trails of air.

Then, a large portion of them slowly descended from the sky and landed in the magnificent and vast city of disorder.

Uesugi Tetsu's face twitched slightly.

He couldn't help but ask,
"With so many powerful individuals landing in that city, if one of them loses their temper and starts a fight, wouldn't they overturn this chaotic city?"

Even after it's been overturned, they still manage to say it in a nice way.

If two demons were to actually fight, they could absolutely reduce this entire row of ancient and towering city walls to dust within three to five minutes.

In less than half an hour, the entire city would be reduced to ruins.

Let alone a demon-level being, even if two Uesugi Tetsuyas who have activated their "rage" were to fight, they could achieve something like this in a few more days.

The key issue is that this disordered city has existed for at least a thousand years, yet it still appears perfectly intact before Uesugi Tetsuya's eyes.

"rule."

Tamamo put her hands on her hips, giving off a "you just don't understand" look, raised a finger, and said with a laugh in her Kansai dialect,

"Within the city of disorder, including the surrounding area, all fighting is prohibited."

“If you insist on making a move, you might not even be able to fully unleash your power before,” Tamamo moved her tongue to the side, rolled her eyes, and struck a dead pose, “and then she’d just die a horrible, violent death on the spot.”

Tamamo snorted softly: "Otherwise, why would we dare to come to a place like this, where powerful demons gather!"

It turned out to be the case.

Uesugi Tetsu nodded thoughtfully and followed the four into the city gate, which was hundreds of meters high and completely unguarded.

In an instant, he clearly felt the omnipresent "rules" that permeated the world.

—If you take action, you will die.

This is an indisputable ironclad rule.

As for how to define this "taking action"...

Uesugi Tetsu felt that he shouldn't play word games with rules that hadn't been bugged in thousands of years.

The city wall was very thick, with a length of over a hundred meters, and its path was blocked by several small demons.

So it took Uesugi Tetsuya two or three minutes to cross the boundary of the city gate and truly enter the city of disorder.

As soon as he stepped out of the city gate, the soft, lively sounds of conversation came from all directions and entered Uesugi Tetsuya's ears.

He looked around and couldn't help but raise his eyebrows.

In Uesugi Tetsu's eyes, the buildings in front of him alone already covered architectural styles from the Heian period, the Edo period, the Taisho period, and several other ancient periods that he could not recognize.

Simple Gassho-zukuri houses, imposing and tall wooden houses, modern-style cement buildings, and scattered primitive buildings.

It's hard to imagine that these buildings would be arranged together.

It's a complete hodgepodge.

It may even be inhabited by people or demons from that era.

Tamamo stared, wide-eyed, and quickly pulled out the small camera hanging around her neck, snapping away at the shutter.

"Wow, what a sight this is..."

"I've already found accommodation for the next few days."

Shi Fandai deliberately stopped and waited for Yuzao for a while, until the latter put down her camera with satisfaction before slowly speaking.
"Check in first, and then you are free to wander around the city of disorder, except during the gambling battles."

"Great!"

Of the group, only Tamamo raised her hand in a cheer immediately.

A few seconds later, she looked at Akiyama Mei and Tsuchiya Yu, who were standing next to the teacher's representative with serious expressions, and shrank back: "Sorry..."

She almost forgot that the three of them, apart from herself, were going to risk their lives in the arena to fight against opponents from the mortal world.

However, thinking of this, Tamamo turned back to look at Uesugi Tetsuya, whose breathing was steady and who was also very curious about his surroundings.

—With Brother Uesugi around, we have to give those blind fools a good beating!
Tear all the hoods off them!
Brother Uesugi is reassuring.

Uesugi Tetsuya, puzzled by the unexpected pat on the back, turned around and heard Tamamo admonish him, "Although you can't beat people up in the City of Chaos, there are plenty of liars..."

"Brother Uesugi, don't be fooled."

"Thank you for reminding."

Uesugi Tetsu then turned his gaze around and discovered that the city was not only inhabited by demons... but also by many people who had come from the mortal world, just like them.

But unlike the tense atmosphere in the real world where people draw their swords at the sight of demons, in the city of disorder, few people care whether you are a demon, a ghost story, or a human.

Because it doesn't make much sense.

In this chaotic city, everyone is only concerned with profit, profit, and more profit.

Buying and selling is the main theme here.

After walking for several minutes, Uesugi Tetsu heard countless demons and humans trading weapons, information, and someone's life...

And so on and so forth, the list goes on and on.

During this time, there were some demons who noticed they were tourists and tried to sell "local specialties," but they all wisely withdrew under the cold stares of the teacher.

A furious voice from the roadside drew Uesugi Tetsuya's attention.

"Once sold, no returns or exchanges. Signature and seal are required; honesty and integrity guaranteed."

"—You sold counterfeit goods and still dare to spout such nonsense! Believe me or not, I'll tear you apart!"

It was a watch shop with a Meiji-era style.

The boss was dressed in a suit and tie, with his hair slicked back, and even had a bowl of his signature water on his head.

The boss showed the contract, with a label like this above his head.

——【Kappa (Half Star)】.

At the entrance of the watch shop stood a blue demon, clad in heavy steel armor, its eyes wide with rage, its muscles bulging, radiating a terrifying aura.

——【Blue Demon General (Four-Star)】.

The blue demon stared intently at the kappa, who was its boss, with hot steam billowing from its nostrils. Its imposing presence caused Uesugi Tetsu to instinctively place his hand on the hilt of his sword.

But the half-star Kappa boss just smiled and acted like a customer service representative on a shopping app, repeating meaningless phrases in a formulaic way.

They were completely unafraid of the threat posed by the Green Demon General.

Finally, having been tricked by the contract and spending a lot of money on a fake watch, Qinggui could only sullenly leave the watch shop with a belly full of anger and extremely heavy steps.

Uesugi Tetsuya, who watched the whole thing: ...

—For a half-star demon to dare speak to the Green Demon General, who is not weak even among ghosts and gods, is a huge shock to his worldview.

In the normal world, even if the kappa's entire family numbered in the five figures, it wouldn't be enough for the blue demon to kill with just one hand.

Tamamo sighed, "This is the city of disorder."

On the way to his lodgings, Uesugi Tetsu witnessed more than once the scene of powerful demons being tricked upon their arrival.

Usually, after being misled, people buy high-quality counterfeits that are indistinguishable from the genuine products at first glance, only to discover something is wrong after trying to use them or using them for a period of time.

But when they came knocking again, the powerful demons, unable to fight back, were completely helpless.

They had no choice but to swallow their pride and bear it.

"Moreover, Soul Ash seems to be a widely circulated currency here."

As Uesugi Tetsu walked and looked around, he stroked his chin and thought, "So many powerful demons have been deceived, but I won't be deceived..."

As soon as he gets his hands on it, he can see the detailed panel of the items for sale, and even just by looking at it, he can roughly distinguish the quality of the items and thus tell whether they are genuine or fake.

In this way, besides being able to find some useful items, wouldn't you also be able to earn a considerable amount of Soul Ash by starting an "appraisal business" here?

Uesugi Tetsu felt that his idea actually had some feasibility.

But before that, we have to wait for the betting match to end.

Uesugi Tetsu's gaze swept over the familiar flags and family crests from the Sengoku period, and he could already see quite a few foot soldiers and samurai from that era.

He narrowed his eyes.

If time permits, perhaps we can try to find these samurai who experienced the Warring States period and ask them about the "Great Onmyoji Che".

Go ask why the Great Onmyoji Che left no trace in history after he left, and what became of the Imagawa family.

What method could be clearer and more understandable than directly asking the people involved in that era?
Teacher Fan spoke up, interrupting his thoughts.

"The four of you can wait outside for a bit; you don't need to come in."

The old man walked alone into the modern hotel, his voice coming out before the glass door closed: "Later, I'll take you to scout out the location of this duel."

……

"Wow, why are there so many people here?"

Tamamo grabbed Kaga Kiyomitsu's tail with both hands and finally managed to squeeze out of the crowd. Then she looked up and saw a huge green plaque.

Five ancient characters are engraved on it using wood grain.

Tamamo couldn't recognize it, and Uesugi Tetsu couldn't understand it either.

Most of the people present were just there to join in the fun and take a picture because there were so many people. They had no idea what the place was called or what it was for.

"The arena of annual rings."

Shi Fandai slowly said, "The core feature that allows it to stand out among the many arenas in this chaotic city is its ability to leave its own projection for later challengers."

Upon hearing this explanation, Uesugi Tetsu thought to himself, "Isn't this a projection secret realm?"
He looked at the ancient tree stump beside his feet, which was covered with dense tree rings. He counted them and found that there were at least two thousand rings.

The instructor led everyone into the arena surrounded by towering ancient trees: "As your projection exists for more years and you win more challenges, your ranking will rise higher and higher."

"Is there any reward?"

Uesugi Tetsu's eyes lit up.

Teacher's College representative shook his head.

He paused for a moment, then said, "Is there a reward a thousand times more important than the one that could be used while one is alive?"

Unbeknownst to them, Uesugi Tetsuya discovered that a group of demons with eager expressions of curiosity, along with people from several eras, had followed behind them. They remained silent, solely focused on listening to the explanations given by Shihan Dai, their unpaid old guide.

"trace."

After a winding journey, Shi Fandai stopped in front of a rough wooden tablet and said, "The Rings Arena will allow you to leave your mark on this world."

Uesugi Tetsuya, who was originally looking at the arena from which earth-shattering noises were coming, turned around and looked at the several wooden tablets standing in front of him.

The characters on it were ancient, but they were quickly transformed into a form that he could understand and comprehend.

The shortest wooden marker is inscribed with the word "New Star".

The shortest wooden monument has ninety-nine names on its surface, from top to bottom.

This was followed by a more easily understood explanation from Uesugi Tetsu: "Under the Demons and Gods."

To put it simply, this [New Star Wooden Stele] contains the traces of the ninety-nine strongest beings, below even the gods and spirits, from ancient times to the present.

Whether human, demon, or ghost story.

Subconsciously, Uesugi Tetsu raised his head.

Look towards the names listed at the top of the wooden tablet.

【Abe Seimei】

If you stare at it for a little longer, you can see that the name of the person in question also reveals their race and the age at which they left their mark on this new star wooden tablet.

Abe no Seimei came to this new star monument when he was eight years old, leaving his name on it for more than a thousand years.

Uesugi Tetsu couldn't help but furrow his brow deeply.

Is he even eight years old?

The many demons behind him were doing the same thing as Uesugi Tetsu.

However, upon seeing that the person at the very top was actually a human, many demons who considered themselves powerful became dissatisfied and, after a cold snort, chose to challenge him directly.

The next instant, Uesugi Tetsu heard a series of muffled groans behind him, followed by a thud as someone collapsed to the ground.

Tamamo chuckled, then peeked out from in front of Uesugi Tetsuya and snapped a picture of the scene with her phone.

Uesugi Tetsuya was speechless: "No one can hurt you."

Tamamo shuddered: "Brother Uesugi, you don't know this, but if an ordinary person like me is stared at by demons and monsters for too long, I'll have nightmares at night."

Ignoring Tamamo, who was busy taking pictures, Uesugi Tetsu walked to the right and saw a wooden monument that was taller than the one he had seen earlier.

【Radiant Moon】.

Then came the hierarchical classification that Uesugi Tetsu remembered—[Demons and Gods].

On this much taller wooden stele, which bears the names of 499 people, the first name is still the one that Uesugi Tetsu is familiar with.

【Ashiya Doman】

According to legend, he was a legendary Onmyoji who was Abe no Seimei's lifelong nemesis during the Heian period.

At this moment, in Uesugi Tetsu's eyes, it was as if the two of them had agreed to each occupy the top of a wooden monument.

Ashiya Dōman left his mark on this radiant wooden monument at the age of... eleven.

For a thousand years, countless great demons and great Onmyoji have passed by this ancient wooden monument, yet not a single demon-god level being has been able to defeat the eleven-year-old Ashiya Dōman...

"Wait, that's not right."

Uesugi Tetsu looked for a while longer before noticing that after Ashiya Doman's name and the numerous wins, there was a new line of data.

— [Number of losses: 9]

He looked back at the new star stele but did not find the data.

In other words, if you lose even once on the Star Stone, your name will be removed from it.

Conversely, it won't.

Uesugi Tetsuya was speechless for a moment.

No wonder the young man in that secret realm said he wanted to lay low for a while... If these two monsters had suddenly appeared in the same era, I'm afraid anyone would have felt despair.

"On the other side are the arenas, which are independent of each other and will not affect the outside world."

The teacher said calmly, "If you're interested, you can pick a couple of matches to try before the main battle... Anyway, you still have half a day to adjust."

"No need."

Akiyama Mei shook his head: "Right now, we need to adjust ourselves and be in the best condition to face our opponents. That's what we should do."

Yu Tsuchiya grinned: "Me too!"

The teacher nodded, then turned to ask, "And what about young Uesugi?"

"I'll try this one."

Uesugi Tetsu pointed to the name [Abe no Seimei], his expression curious: "How can one not take on the challenge of meeting a legendary figure without having to pay anything?"

Teacher Fan smiled and gestured for him to enter.

Uesugi Tetsu stared at the name for a while, then poured a few drops of spiritual energy into the words "Challenge" behind it.

A flash went through his eyes.

Then, another flash.

With a slight headache, Uesugi Tetsu opened his eyes and saw the unchanged wooden monument once again.

He recalled that extremely brief moment and realized that he must have been killed before he could even react.

Uesugi Tetsu couldn't help but chuckle.

This eight-year-old child from the Heian period was far more powerful than the swordsman Kamiizumi.

The elder brother in that secret realm was indeed right...

He even suspected that this projection of Abe no Seimei could defeat many demons and gods.

Otherwise, how could he have killed himself without saying a word, without even giving himself time to unleash his "rage"?
Are you feeling dizzy and lightheaded?

Shi Fandai rarely showed a wistful smile: "Back then, I was also knocked flying by this old man from the Heian period before I could even react."

Uesugi Tetsu glanced again at the group of demons who were wailing in despair.

"All beings are equal..."

He shook his head, deciding to come back here one more time before ascending to the level of a ghost god.

Wait until then.

He will make the first person to inscribe this wooden tablet change hands.

……

Although it was said to be half a day, it was actually only a few hours since Uesugi Tetsu came to the Nenrin Arena for the second time.

Taking out the wooden ticket from his backpack, Uesugi Tetsuya entered the entrance passage of the ancient arena, which was supported and wrapped by dozens of towering ancient trees, as a [contestant].

Because there were also many other duels between ghosts, gods, and demons at the same time, the stands around the arena were quite empty, and there weren't many onlookers watching the duels.

Most of them came because of the names "Hojo family" and "Yagyu dojo".

As for the names of the contestants, no one cared.

Nobody wants to know what an unknown soldier was called, and not many people are well-versed in the history of the Warring States period, which is only a few decades or a few hundred years old.

Uesugi Tetsuya first walked up the vine-covered stairs, which were both strong and flexible, to the waiting area. He stood behind Shihan Dai and saw the "Third-Tier Scale" family crest on the opposite side of the arena.

The last time I saw this tattoo was at the old tortoise's coming-of-age ceremony.

A subtle sense of familiarity arose in Uesugi Tetsuya's heart. He looked again at the handsome young man sitting in the main seat, waving a folding fan.

Uesugi Tetsu asked in a low voice, "Hojo Soun?"

After all, historically speaking, Hojo Soun was the first head of the Hojo family, and it is reasonable that he was able to unify the power of the various Hojo families in the world.

Teacher Shi Fan shook his head: "No, Hojo Ujiyasu."

Upon hearing this answer, Uesugi Tetsu became serious.

Because Hojo Ujiyasu was the head of the Hojo clan who lived in the same era as him and Imagawa Yoshimoto five hundred years ago.

So, their ally at that time happened to be the most difficult one to deal with in the history of the Hojo clan...

Uesugi Tetsu looked back again and saw three military figures with the [three and a half stars] indicator above their heads behind the smiling Hojo Ujiyasu.

One was short and stocky like a barrel, wearing a Noh mask, with cold, pale gray eyes, his hair tied up in a tea whisk style, and dressed in gray kimonos.

He was probably Kasahara Yasukatsu, the White Guard among the five guards of the Hojo clan.

One was hunched over and thin, with a long face and narrow forehead, wrinkles like ravines, sparse eyebrows, almost no hair, and his body was almost completely black.

The old man noticed Uesugi Tetsu's gaze, then grinned, revealing a set of nearly fallen, yellowed black teeth.

Black-clad, Ten-eyed Mototada.

Uesugi Tetsu thought to himself, then turned his gaze to the last baby-faced military officer.

This person is relatively tall, with front hair that reaches his eyebrows and back hair braided into a snake tail braid. His index finger joints are unusually large.

Without a doubt, it remains one of the five-color guards—Blue Guard: Tominaga Naokatsu.

In a mere gambling match, the Hojo family's trump card, the Five Colors Set, had already reached three-tenths.

Even though the most famous and arguably the most powerful of them all, Huang Bei Hojo Tsunashige, was not present, it is clear that Hojo Ujiyasu has given him considerable attention.

Even a lion uses its full strength to hunt a rabbit; it's nothing more than that.

"Lord Saionji."

Hojo Ujiyasu's voice came from a hundred meters away.

Despite his thick accent, his voice was exceptionally clear: "Well, have you decided on the players for the first battle?"

Uesugi Tetsu remained silent, feeling Shihan Dai's gaze shift to him.

(End of this chapter)